Gwen and George, Russell and the Ancient One

Earth-65, Queens, New York.

Back home, Gwen furrowed her brows.

No one? George wasn't home? Was he too busy with some case?

Still thinking, Gwen turned on the living room lights.

There was no clutter, and the furniture was neatly arranged.

Yet a thin layer of dust covered many places.

Downstairs, George sat in his car with a vacant look in his eyes.

He had been sitting there for a long time.

Ever since Gwen disappeared, every night had been like this.

Hmm? Why were the living room lights on?

Had a thief broken in, or... had Gwen returned?

Drawing his service pistol and staying alert, George pressed the doorbell.

"Gwen?"

George called from outside, his voice filled with hope and fear.

"Dad!"

The door opened, and father and daughter embraced excitedly.

They had not been apart for long, but longing and worry had stretched that time infinitely.

"It's good that you're back. It's good that you're back."

George's hands trembled as he patted Gwen's back.

When Gwen had first disappeared, George had thought she had run away from home and had been furious.

Though father and daughter had the occasional small conflict, how could it have come to this?

After investigating, he had found no trace of Gwen whatsoever.

George began to panic, worried that criminals who hated him had retaliated against Gwen.

"Dad, I'll explain everything slowly."

Seeing the gray hair at George's temples and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes,

then comparing him to the young, cheerful George from Another Universe,

Gwen's heart ached even more for her father.

"What a touching scene."

As the Mirror Dimension spread, a voice rang out.

An old man with a white beard and the bearing of an immortal slowly materialized from illusion into reality.

Master Ancient One from Earth-616, the Main Universe.

"Master Russell." Russell bowed in greeting.

"Master Russell." The male Ancient One returned the bow with a smile and praised him,

"She often mentions you to me lately. You truly are a handsome, spirited young man."

Faced with the Ancient One's praise, Russell did not know how to respond for a moment.

It was not embarrassment; he simply did not know how to distinguish them in terms of address.

"Don't worry about titles. We are both the Ancient One."

Seeing Russell's difficulty, the Ancient One explained.

"Mind-reading?" Russell asked in surprise.

"You can't do that? You should be able to."

The Ancient One countered.

"I saw that your mind was completely undefended, so I thought you had deliberately left it open."

Russell's face darkened, and he swiftly gathered his Mental Focus.

At the same time, he pushed his Perception to its limit, trying to catch the Ancient One's mental fluctuations.

See? You can do it after all.

At first, the Ancient One left his mind unguarded and allowed Russell to read his thoughts.

Then he blocked Russell's Perception.

Russell said gloomily, "Master, isn't this tiring?"

The Ancient One smiled and shook his head.

"Ever since I left my body and began existing as a Spiritual Body,

this has become my instinct, as natural as breathing.

Trying not to perceive things is what tires me out.

You're young. You should look after an old man like me."

Hmm, a Spiritual Body?

After the Ancient One's hint, Russell understood.

Looking more closely, although the Ancient One's body appeared solid, it had no true substance. It was condensed from pure Spiritual Power.

"Master, you..." Russell asked in confusion.

Had he already quit and dumped everything on Doctor Strange?

"It's only a fleshly body."

The Ancient One waved dismissively.

"You don't understand yet. At my level, there is no difference between a Spiritual Body and a physical body."

The Ancient One's Spiritual Power flowed as his body shifted back and forth between flesh and Spiritual Body.

"One more thing: my physical body is ultimately mortal.

You're different. Don't imitate me."

Russell recalled what the Blood God had said when his consciousness descended a few days ago.

Deacon Frost's body had mediocre potential.

Even strengthened to its limit, it would only be equivalent to a Physique of around forty or fifty at the transcendent tier.

(For reference, Strength 4 equals 50 tons.)

"Master, is there a limit to strengthening one's Physique?"

The Ancient One gave Russell a strange look.

"Whether it is the body or the soul, both have limits.

To break through those limits, you either need a special opportunity or must rely on the power of the mind.

Relatively speaking, the power of the mind has a greater compatibility with the soul.

Therefore, it is easier for the soul to break through its limits."

After saying that, the Ancient One carefully examined Russell.

"Your body, soul, and mind have all reached a state of ultimate balance and are currently transforming.

Your foundation is exceptionally solid. You shouldn't be unaware of such things.

How did the other me teach you?"

Russell looked at the Ancient One with an obedient expression.

Did he need to know?

"You haven't encountered a limit yet?" The Ancient One suddenly realized and asked.

"Mm."

Russell nodded obediently, waiting for the expert's lecture.

"That explains it." The Ancient One stroked his beard.

"Your talent is quite good.

Although your individual attributes are currently inferior to those of certain innately powerful races,

your strength lies in your balance and greater potential for development.

You are naturally suited to becoming a mage."

Powerful, balanced attributes were not Russell's talent.

Deep Blue, activate!

Name: Russell (Transcendent)

Lifespan: 25/323,4399

Physique II: 100

Perception II: 100

Spirit II: 100

Talent 1 Energy Absorption: Can absorb any energy and convert it into Attribute Points, defaulting to Lifespan.

Talent 2 Attribute Transfer: Lifespan can be converted into Physique, Perception, and Spirit.

Description Panel: Upgrading (approximately three months remaining).

Russell's talents were Energy Absorption and Attribute Transfer.

The female Ancient One had probably figured out most of it.

She might not know that absorbed energy could be converted into Lifespan.

Clearly, she had not shared this information with the other Ancient Ones across the Multiverse.

"By the way, what spells have you learned?" the Ancient One asked curiously.

The other her had not stopped bragging about him recently.

Russell held up one finger.

"You learned them all?"

"One."

As he spoke, a Portal opened, leading directly beyond the Mirror Dimension.

The Ancient One fell silent, somewhat conflicted.

"Your Portal research is quite good. You can pass through my Mirror Dimension's seal."

But why did you only know one spell?

The Ancient One suddenly realized something.

"No, you just used a Mind Ability.

In Universe 1610, you also used a spell similar to energy projection."

Russell scratched his head. "Do those count as spells?" Didn't anyone with hands know how to do that?

The Ancient One took a deep breath, though a Spiritual Body did not need to breathe.

"How long have you been studying spells?"

Russell raised another finger.

So this was how the female Master Ancient One had felt back then.

"One day?"

Hmm? Russell was surprised.

"Master, how did you guess?"

"Mm, that's passable." The Ancient One said flatly.

Stephen Strange, my proudest disciple.

Now, we were strangers.

"The father and daughter outside are almost done talking. I'll be leaving first."

The Ancient One's figure gradually faded away, leaving one final instruction.

"Come to Kamar-Taj tomorrow and find me. I'll show you something good."

The Mirror Dimension dissipated, and Russell did not appear directly inside Gwen's house.

Instead, he left first, then opened a Portal.

A moment later, he stepped through the Portal and brazenly appeared in the living room.

Russell had done this deliberately.

Traveling across the Multiverse was simply too unbelievable.

No matter how Gwen explained it, George would not truly believe her.

He simply did not want to press the matter for now, so long as Gwen had returned.

But facts spoke louder than words.

That was Russell's purpose.